Bouraima Abdoulkarimou—Karim for short—is a young Dendi man in his late twenties. Married just a year ago, he and his wife are expecting their first child in a few months. Karim was among the first people I met in Kandi when I visited the mayor’s office. He is devoted to Islam, but he showed great openness to spiritual matters, inviting me into discussion. At first I thought he was interested only in confrontation, but I was wrong.

Karim holds degrees in marketing and law. He currently works at the mayor’s office as the legal consultant and head of the cultural department. He has a good knowledge of English and shares the dream of most young Africans—going to America.

I have visited with Karim at least monthly over the last 10 months. As a newly launched missionary focusing on language learning and cultural study, I have talked a lot about these things with him. But Karim always wants to know more about my faith, the differences between me and other Christians and my views on Islam. Elmire and I pray continually for wisdom to respond redemptively to Karim and build a relationship of trust. Genuine respect and love have always motivated our rapport as we discuss similarities between Christianity and Islam.

Karim understands our mission well and has been our advocate in many public discussions. He favors dialog and believes his people should take time to listen to us, analyze our faith and look for ways we can help them toward better worship of the one true God. I admit that this sounds incredible for a devout Muslim, but it is actually what Karim believes and stands for.

Thank you so much for your faithful support. Please continue to pray for us as we build bridges to communicate our faith with humility and respect as channels of God’s love and redemption.

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